Book Five: Humanity
by KDior
Summary: Four years after the war, the Gaaang meets at the Fire Nation Palace for Zuko's and Mai's wedding/ coronation. However, the wedding is canceled. Katara arrives, all though she has horrible anxiety of being in the castle for unknown reasons. A deep secret about both Katara's and Zuko's mother is revealed, and the two are determined to find the truth. ZUTATRA
1. Chapter 1: Falling Apart

Zuko  
"Mai?" I call down the dimly lit hall of the Fire Lord's palace. I feel my way through the shroud of darkness. Mai has found this hallway of the estate to be of her own dominion. Maybe it is due to the eternal gloominess of the windowless rooms, or the fact that no one ever travels down the hall. I know the real reason.  
I trace my pale fingers around the melted metal that runs vertically down the walls, made from an angry fire bender's fingers raking across it while aflame. Suddenly, it feels as if Toph has launched a rock down my throat and then pushed it into my lungs. The memories come flooding back to me. "Azula." I mutter under my breath. I can feel hot tears roll down my cheeks, evaporating before they reach his mouth in a puff of smoke. "How long has it been since I saw you? Four years?" She has been in the asylum for years. I sigh as I push the thought away, and past the ash colored curtain and into my sister's old room.

Her back is to me. I study her; black hair slopes down asemetricly hitting the tops of her bare pale shoulders. _My fiance._ She has grown a foot taller since the war, and all the more quiet. I silently observe the way she stands, the way her kimodo drapes of one shoulder haphasardly. _One more day until you are my wife. _Warm feelings flood me. I remember the first time she admitted these feelings. _I don't hate you either. _We're not the most romantic creatures, but we are happy together. I keep telling myself this the closer the day arrives... Mai doesn't look happy. I realize, watching her fiddle with something in her hands. "Hey." I say smoothly.

Mai jumps suddenly, the picture she was holding shatters against the crimson floor. "Zuko." She gasps; her face wrinkles in shock but then sinks back into its normal emotionless self. She looks at the tapestry on the wall, which is a silk Fire Nation tapestry from the war-time, and then to her feet.

"What's going on here?" I step forward, confused. I grab her hand, but she drops it and bends down to pick up the pieces of the frame. The air is so still and heavy that it seems as if she is moving in slow motion. I can see her hands trembling, I must have startled her more than I thought.

"Oh! Ow!" She says suddenly. "Damn it." The glass has sliced right through the palm of her hand. Her blood runs all over the photograph and onto the floor.

"Here." I take the photograph from her hand while pulling out a snow-white handkerchief. Carefully, I wrap it around her palm. "Calm down." I try to soothe her by petting her hair, but she dodges my hand swiftly. "What has got you so upset?" First, I notice the bags stacked in the far corner of the room. Then, the closet door is standing wide open, with nothing left inside but a crimson dress with an ash colored train and "Why did you pack? It's not like we are vacationing after the coronation."

"Zuko. I can't be Fire Lady." She pauses, staring at me for the longest time, like she was trying to find the words. "I can't be your wife." She pulls the gold ring from her finger and sits it on top of the picture frame. My vision blurs as I stare at the flame shaped trail of rubies on the ring. "Zuko, a lot of things have happened since the end of the war, and since you asked me to marry you. It's been three years. Three years for me to think. You weren't ever here. You were off rebuilding the Nation, which is what you are meant to do. You don't need me. It's just not what I need to do."

"What is it that you need, Mai?" My voice raises, and I can feel my body boiling. I'm not sad, I'm angry and embarrassed. _How can she do this? Why now?_

"I don't know yet. Since I was a child, I have been expected to have this life. To follow what everyone told me to do! Did you know that our fathers planned, since our birth, that we were going to get married? Azula and I were to be friends throughout our lives, and I was to then be close to you. The inter-marring of our families would bring the further strength and control of the prison system, which you know your father wanted."

"Who cares what Ozai wanted?" He screams. "What about what we want?"

"You mean you want! You have always been selfish! Now it is my turn to have my own life! The reason I'm like this," she gestures at her blank face, "Is because this is what everyone else wanted! I don't want this! I can't." She regains composure, and she moves away quickly, toward the door.

"Mai. Stop." She freezes by the door. "Listen, we don't have to get married tomorrow. We can wait if you want to. Just don't leave me."

"Do you love me Zuko?"

I am taken aback. "What? Of course I do! Mai-?"

"Can you honestly say that you love me, and only me? Be honest!"

"Mai." I begin but something wont let me finish. The rest of my words catch in my dry throat.

"Goodbye Zuko." She disappears through the curtain.

I stand there, numb, clutching the broken, bloody photograph and my mothers betrothal ring. I slip the ring in my robe pocket. I stare at the picture. Mai's blood covers her own face, and most of the royal engagement party. The only two faces spared are my own, and Katara's, who had been at my right.

"No!" I scream, my anger getting the better of me. My knees buckle causing me to collapse on the wooden floor, and fire comes out of my mouth and burns from my palms. I feel the hot tears streaming off my face. Then I watch as the photo crumples until it turns into a puff of smoke.


	2. Chapter 2: Drinking Games

Katara

My blue slippers scrape the mahogany wood as I follow behind the servant in the glowing halls of the Fire Palace. I have always relished in being early. I have always planned out every step of my journey, and for the past six months, I planned everything to the second. With all that I have done lately, taking the three days to attend the Fire Nation wedding is almost a relief. Almost. For some reason, I just don't feel comfortable here. The fact that this was once the home of the enemy, and the bride-to-be hating my guts are just two of the reasons for my unease.

I shift the heavy shoulder bag containing all the scrolls for the plans for increasing the communication between the Southern and the Northern Water Tribes. After much debating, they had finally come to a compromise, thanks to the Seal-hawks. Seal-hawks can fly messages in just a few days, and thanks to Sokka, both tribes had plenty of the birds. I can't help but to feel pride in my accomplishments. Sea-hawks were my mother's favorite bird.

"I can take it from here." I smile at the girl. The girl bows and hurries back in the direction in which we came. I know the way to Zuko's room, because I had always stayed in there when traveling back and forth from the two tribes. Not while he was in there of course, but he had opened the room to me. Oddly, Zuko and I have become close, even closer than Aang and I. I get the overwhelming urge to surprise him. I stand outside the doorway fixing my long chocolate-brown hair and repining my blue clips. I exhale then push past the heavy, flame covered tapestry.

His room is unusually dark. The only candles that are lit sit in the north corner of the room, and they flicker to the point they almost go out. My entrance casts an eerie shadow across the room. Then, my eyes finally land on Zuko, curled in the opposite corner of the room, his face in his hands.  
"Zuko!" My voice spikes with worry. My shoulder bag hits the floor as she runs to him. "Are you okay?" Has he had a seizure? Is he bleeding? Is it shock? The thoughts fly through my head as I feels his head. I pull a heavy blanket from the near by bed and wraps his around his rigid shoulders. I place my long brown fingers on his temples. His face is scorching hot, but of course it always is.

"What are you doing?" His voice is scratchy as if he had swallowed a gallon of smoke; he tenses but doesn't move away from me.

"Zuko? Have you-" I pause cautiously, studying his face in the dim light. I try to put it gently, carefully. "Been crying?"

He avoids my eyes. "Of course not." I watch his cheeks flush. His hand wraps around my hand on his right side of his face, but he doesn't force me away. His skin is rippled and rough, but his touch is light and soft. He traces the scar on my wrist absently. I gasp while he does this. No one, not even Aang has touched the scar, mainly because I won't let them. It was from my fight with Azula; the one that, if it weren't for Zuko, I would be dead. Oddly, I can't help comparing the similarities to Zuko's.

I give him a small smile, and massage his temple with her free hand. Silently, I trace the outer ripples of his scar. It's a pinky red color, and emits ten times more heat than the rest of his body. I can feel the pain it holds just beneath the surface. Not physical pain of course, the emotional scar of his father lingers, all these years later.

He tilts his head back slightly and closes his golden eyes. "Hmm." He mumbles enjoying the sensation. "That's nice." The ending hisses as I press harder. I feel my whole face heat up, and I drop his hand abruptly, moving slightly away. His eyebrow raises, and his eyes glimmer in the candle light. "What's going on?"

My heart thumps wildly in my throat. "How's Mai?" I say awkwardly as I shift my weight, and stare at the swirls on the ceiling. Zuko releases her hand, and looks at the floor. I instantly hate myself for saying it.

"She's gone."

"Gone where? Your wedding is tomorrow."

"No it's not."

"Yes it is. I didn't spend a week on a polar bear dog to get here if there wasn't a wedding!"

"She left me." The candles spike up the walls as his hands curl together.

"Oh. Zuko..." I wrap my arms around his neck. I can't help thinking about how good he smells, like ginger and smoldering wood. I push the thought away as I speak. "Why?"

"This," He gestures around him, and I let go, "wasn't what she wanted." He reaches for a bottle hidden behind him and takes a long drink from it.

"I can't see why." I wrap my fingers in his. "Vodka? Do you really think that is healthy for a fire bender?"

He shrugs. "Sokka sent it to me from Whale-tail Island." He sucks it down again and burps a small explosion. Tassels from the canopy catch fire and flutter down in ashes.

"Well if Sokka sent it then we should enjoy it." I grabs at the bottle, but he pulls it away. "Hey!"

"I don't think you can handle this strong of a drink, Sweetness." He laughs holding the bottle over his head.

"Oh no! Have you been talking to Toph lately? She's the only one who called me that!" I swirl my fingers in the air, lifting the vodka into the air. It's oddly lighter than water. It easily swirls around itself and then snakes into my mouth with a flick of the wrist.

"Vodka bending. That's new." He laughs while taking another drink.

"Yeah. I can bend almost all liquids. It's weird. I haven't met another bender like me." I bite my tongue at the slight lie, remembering Hama. I take another gulp, burning her away.

He moves closer to me, looking deep into my eyes as if he's memorizing the oceans of swirling blue. "You're special, Katara. It's time you admit it."


	3. Chapter 3: Dreams

Zuko

I'm blind. The light engulfs me. I can almost feel it boiling my skin. I feel along the scorching metal all around me, trying to find my way through the blistering rays. What happened? I wonder. I watch the wind blow, causing the light to break apart drop-like pieces of the sun drift down from the sky, almost like snow. The wind blows harder and I drift across the plane. I can feel the anticipation well up in my chest and throat, though I don't know why I feel this way.

"Fire Lord Zuko!" The voices chant from all around me. The sounds boom off the metal walls. It grows and grows, and I can feel a smile twist upon my face. My people cheer is melodic; they are so happy, so delightfully joyous. I hear myself laugh, and it mixes into the voices among me. The measures flow together and transform into wafting notes. They hang high in the air, and dance on my ear drums. Then, the air changes, blowing the sweet scent of burning snow-lavender into my nose. The lights spin and dance as someone pushes me down a long hallway. I feel my heart race, and my blood pump, surging against my skin.

I feel a soft pressure on my back. "Calm down Zuko." The deep voice carries through the wind sending more of the smell through my lungs. "She loves you." His voice twinkles among the notes of the soft swooning song that the band plays. I can't help but smile.

The song stops abruptly. The whole room turns to the heavy oak door. The heavy silk tapestries swirl together, like a crimson, blue, and white cream-icicle. I see Toph's twin girls scampering down the aisle, throwing bright flowers into the air. They giggle and turn, their long black hair reaching the backs of their childish knees. I laugh, thinking of how differently Toph would act, I lean slightly forward and see her crunching her nose in disgust. I can't help noticing her traditional Earth Kingdom dress had been ripped up to her knees. I silently laugh. Somehow she can sense that I'm looking and shrugs in response.

The door parts again. I can't help but softly smile. Uncle holds up Azula by the arm. They step in time with the beat, and she unbelievably doesn't even scowl. She grabs my arm as she goes to her pew. "You are the lucky one ZuZu." She laughs, and it was almost in the tune of the music. It seems to hit on an awkward note, making people slightly in awe but still uncomfortable. My sister has the tendency to do that.

Uncle lets her go and she glides over to her spot beside Toph. Toph clenches her fists tighter. She still doesn't trust Azula, though she has had years of rehabilitation. The door opens a last time, and the crowd takes in a simultaneous breath. The light shines so bright...

The blistering sun bursts through the space between the heavy curtains, illuminating the room. I can feel it on my skin, feel it in my blood. I keep my eyes closed, savoring the last remnants of my dream. I rub my neck against something soothingly cool, like sweet mint. It mixes with the smell of vodka. Vodka? What the hell happened to me?

"Zuko!" My eyes fly open. "Oh my god! Zuko! Katara! Zuko and Katara!" Sokka stands there, halfway in the door. His eyes are wide, looking back and forth from me to her.

"Sokka! Hey!" His face gets redder and redder until I follow his glare. Katara is laying on my bare chest, her fingers trace the top of my collar-bone. Her lips brush my skin gently and causes a light shudder from me in response. "Oh God." I gasp looking back at Sokka. Please. Please let me have pants on! I think.  
"What the hell did you do to my sister, Zuko!" His voice breaks at the end, going up an octave. He throws down his pack, and sinks his teeth into a piece of saber-tooth lion jerky. "Get your hands off her!" He flies across the room, and tries to latch his hands on to my neck, but I simply deflect the blow and push him away.

Katara stirs and makes a small noise, feeling my sudden movement. "Sokka!" I hiss, trying not to disturb her even more. "I swear! This is not what it looks like! Let me explain, peacefully."

"Outside. You have two minutes." He stomps out the door.

He sure hasn't become any less stubborn!" I think as I pry myself from Katara's embrace. Why am I shirtless? I find my smock by the empty bottle of vodka. I remember the way the liquid shined in the moonlight as Katara bended it. What happened next however is lost to me, leaving behind a surging headache that almost makes me get sick. What happened last night?

Katara

I was dreaming of surf and sun, the moment of calm before Sozin's Comet hit. I remember the surf in the fire nation was hot, like a tempered bath, and a brilliant turquoise blue. I had to fight to keep my ice board solid. It was before sunrise. When I couldn't sleep, I surfed. It seemed like the only thing to take away my problems.

I didn't spot Zuko until he was right next to me in the frothy water. "I didn't know you surfed." I swirled small strands of water around my arm.

"I picked it up when I was on the run from my sister." His husky voice didn't carry well across the waves, and he had to lean forward. "A small group of refugees from the water tribe taught me. Of course, I can't surf on ice." He put his hand on it, and glided across the slick surface. To my surprise, he ran his hand down my leg before turning himself about, into the waves.

Then the dream shifted, drastically. The sea froze over, capturing Zuko up under the ice. I pounded desperately on the frozen sea. "No!" I screeched. I tried to bend it all away but it didn't disapate. Zuko started sinking, falling devastatingly fast. "Don't leave me!" I screamed as his amber eyes disappeared into the deep ocean.

When I awoke I am encased in a cold sweat. All I could hear was my own screams. I suddenly fell to the oak floor. "Katara?" A husky voice calls from another room. I can't bend; I can't move. I can hear my breath come out in short little pants. Suddenly, I'm lifted from the floor. "Katara!" The voice is in my ear, but I can't see the owner.

"Let me go!" I flail, but all attempts of escape are subdued by two strong arms. I can feel tears stream down my face. "Please!" I wrap my legs around my attackers, knocking him off-balance. We both slam to the floor, and I feel my head becoming wet and sticky. My eyes, however, finally find the light, but all I see is a pair of sparkling amber eyes staring back at me before it all goes blank.


	4. Chapter 4: Breaking

**A/N: Just so everyone is aware, my story does not follow the Avatar plot precisely. One it's Zutara. Two Katara's personality is slightly warped due to something that I have added to the begining of Book 3. Please review and tell me if there is anything you would think that would be nice to be added. Also thanks to midnightwings96 for helping me work out plot kinks. You rock my socks girl! (:**

**~KDior 3**

Katara

The first thing I notice when my eyes open again is the sea of white: a white ceiling, four white walls, a strong metal white door, a puffy white bed, next is the creeping sensation that I am being watched. The feeling scampers down my spine, causing the hair on my neck to stand on end, and empties itself at my toes before starting over again. I feel myself shudder under it's wrath. My throat is drier than the desert where the Hidden Library is, as if someone had bended it all out of my body. I notice there is no water anywhere in this sleek, reflective, white room. The feeling grows, causing a heavy weight on my chest, and I struggle to breathe in normally. I lay as still as possible, trying to make it seem as if I am still sleeping to whomever it concerns. My eyes take in all the room, which only expands to hold a small table, and a rolling stool on the other side of the room. I don't see the ever watching eyes.

I'm trying to hold my calm while I move a misplaced hair from my vision, but a clanging noise and my wrist stopping mid-chest. Why am I in shackles? I can feel my annoyance growing, all the while heightening my past anxious feelings. I inspect the restraints as closely as possible. They are made of the same plush material that I am laying under, and have no real locking mechanism, even if I could find something to bend, I couldn't pick it. An odd growl comes from my throat, surprising me. All of my feelings are so strong, and they surge against my brain. I flail my arms in frustration, pinching something that is attached to my arm. Then I see the clear tubes, pushing some strange fluid into my veins. I'm being drugged? I can feel the scream welling up in the back of my throat. My anger swirls with the paranioa, my head pounding. Something snaps in me, and all of that erupts. My vision blurs, and all I can hear is animalistic screams.

Zuko

I had tried not to chew my nails, as an attempt of looking "like a Fire Lord should". Everytime I even think about Katara, my nails take the punishment. Bite, rip, spit over and over as I replay the scenes in my mind. Last night was unbelievably amazing, well at least the parts of it that I can remember. I remember her laugh in the candle light, and the smell of the lavender of her skin. Most of all I remember how good it felt to hold her in my arms.

Just then Sokka's blade smashes through a patch of bamboo, and the sound breaks my thoughts. We are in the Southern Grove, the closest to the hospital wing where Katara was resting. I can see his grumblings in his head as he whacks more bamboo. I can't disable his hostility. It's my fault that she is hooked up to pain killers in that shiny white jail cell.

I was midway through convenseing Sokka that nothing happened between her and I last night, or at least nothing to my knowledge. I told him that we were drunk, and stupid, and instead of making her sleep in an unknown room, in this palace that she is already so unnerved by, I allowed her to just curl up by me. He was starting to buy it too, but Katara's screams echoed off the golden walls of the palace, and to us, a whole wing away. I dropped the liquid hangover cure and sprinted out of the room, ripping the tapestry from the door in my haste.

"Katara!" I screamed after her, half in trying to calm her, the other in pure desperation. The only thought that ran through my head was that I had to get to I came to my room I didn't even pause. Her screams were now so intense, more anguished. Whatever caused this had her terrified. She was flailing on the floor, wrapped in all the blankets from my bed. Her face was covered, but she was trying to break free. "Katara." I said trying to calm her. I place my hand on her shoulders, but she knocks them aside, and her screams grew louder. "Katara!" I pick her up on her feet, trying to strip the blankets from her trembling body. Then she started kicking.

"Zuko! What's wrong with her!" Sokka had just found my room by this point, and he stood behind me somewhere, though I couldn't see.

Her kicks got more and more ferocious, and suddenly, she flings herself sideways. I feel myself get tangled in the fabrics. She goes down, fast, and I follow. Her head bounces off the ground because my full weight slammed against her. All the blood pooled up around us. Sokka started screaming for a medic. I tried to stop all the blood. Her blood soaked my robes, and stained my hands. "Katara!" I finally was able to rip the fabric away. "I'm so sorry, Katara. I am sorry." Her blue eyes fluttered closed.

While thinking of this, I have chewed my nail into a bloody mess. Sokka has given up slashing for stabbing a tree trunk. The blood from my hands stream down my hands, just as Katara's had. I shudder, wiping it on the soft grasses. I break everything I touch.

"Prince Zuko!" A royal minder sprints through the grove to us. Sokka falls backward as he yanks his sword from the tree.

"What?" He scampers to his feet as he says it. "What's up?" As he comes to join me I realize just how much he has changed. He's a half-inch shorter than I am, but far more lean. Toph had even told me that she had made a new nickname for him, String Bean, which of course he hated. Besides height, he had even grown facial hair:a small chin beard, and some weird patches of almost their hair that he tried to shave. It seems weird to think that he is eighteen now. So many things have changed since then.

The minder interrupts my train of thought. "The patient has woke up." I push past him and through the doors. "Prince Zuko! Wait!" He scampers beside me as I swiftly make my way through the maze-like corridors. "She..." He pauses, which actually startles me enough to make me stop in my tracks. "There is something gravely wrong with her, your lordship. She is panicking, and has some manic, animalistic, destructive force inside of her. No matter how we have attempted to sedate her, she will not rest. She has been at the same fit for about fifteen minutes now. And-"

Sokka manages to catch up with us now. "Where is my sister?" He demands, placing his large, tan hands on the small shoulders of the minder. His eyes are wide with desperation.

The minder squeaks in response to Sokka's grip. "She's just up ahead, but the woman you find may not be the one that you left.


	5. Chapter 5: Lost

**A/N: I really enjoyed writing this one! I'm bringing back one of my favorite styles, one of my favorite people, and some good Sokka/Zuko... arguing. No. I will not ship them. Ew. Also, one of the characters I hate is back. It just fits. :/ Warning. Curses are amped up a bit. Not too bad. Just what a high schooler might say... **

**Well review please! It makes me smile! lol 3kdior**

Katara

I've never reacted well to being trapped, even as a child, when I got trapped on the wrong side of a snow bank, I screamed and cried like a little baby. It took me three hours to get my bearings back, and another two to scale the snow and make it back to the village. Panic always over bares me, paralyzes me. Right now is no exception. I just snap, and fail, unsuccessfully trying to break the restraints.

The door makes a sharp grinding noise, like metal on metal. With a loud click, the door swings open. I force myself as upright as I possibly can. "Let me out." I snarl the words at my captor. His shoes click against the tile as he walks, but other than that he doesn't make a sound. He faces away from me, opening a small concealed compartment in the wall. He turns sharply, revealing himself to me. Where his face should be there is nothing but white. The mask curves upward, giving the appearance of horns. Five slots represent a mouth, and the eyes twist up with the horns. "No." I gasp. I can hear my heart pounding in my ears. I tense up my body, curling my hands into fists.

He leans across me to take the needle from my arm. My ears pick up a distinct jingling in his pocket. Keys. I think. I close my eyes and my mind goes on autopilot. I feel myself take a sharp breath in, but it's as if I'm partly in my body. The drumming of a heart returns, but I can't hear another sound. The man seems to move in slow motion. With the next breath, the man unnaturally falls to the floor, face first, catching himself with an oddly bent arm. "What?" He gurgles, astounded and confused.

"I warned you." The voice feels rough, and foreign. It's almost as if I have no control. "Get up." He rises, slowly; his legs straighten and pop like a disjointed doll. He staggers forward, awkwardly and slow, like a baby deer-bear pushing through a current. He stands by the table, and I can feel him trying to fight my influence.

"Please." He croaks out the words. "Stop." I ignore him; I make him lift his arm high, his wrist bent. Then, he slams it into his cloak pocket so hard it rips the expensive material. He retrieves the shiny gold key, and I squeeze my eyes tightly, forcing him to unlock the controls on the bed. Instantaneously, the cuffs pop open, and I roll my stiff ankles and wrists. Sliding off the bed, I stumble due to the weakness in my knees, slamming my head on a small table that hold various tools. The tools clang to the ground around me, and sticky wet blood runs down my cheek. The guard crumbles, landing to my left. I crawl to my feet, grabbing the keys from him, and run out the white door, not daring to look back.

You blood-bended him, Katara. You took away his freewill. My sense and reason come back to me as soon as I burst from the sterile room. I feel my legs pumping, but it almost feels like I'm standing still. The walls bend and curve at weird angles, all coming at me. My sense of direction is gone, but my guilt is running full force. I swore to myself I would never do that again. My feet hit the ground hard, and I lose purchase on the floor. I slide to my knees. The pain is blinding, but I force myself to crawl. I feel along the walls for the opening to a room. My mind is so foggy, partly from blood loss, bending exhaustion, and falling, but also from the horribly anxious feeling in the pit of my stomach. If it wasn't for my fear of being captured, I would probably curl up in a ball until I was able to function. I can't afford that now, so I press on down the walls.

Zuko

I run into the hospital room. The waiting area is stark white, a contrast from the ember embalm on the floor. A young female nurse bows to me, smiling sweetly. I don't even pause, instead I push past her, and she spins in a small circle. After, she huffs, straightening her hair and skirt. I run to the door, and pull on it quickly. To my dismay, it stays shut tight. I groan, and spin to face her. "Open the door."

"Certainly." Her brown eyes almost shimmer when I look at her. Her dark brown bob is held back by only a simple white hat. As she retrieves the key, she mutters something. She turns quickly on her heels. "I said that my name is Jin." She smiles sweetly, showing a small gap between her teeth. I nod. I don't know why she is telling me this. I guess I must have acknowledged her mumblings. I truly don't know. My mind is centered on Katara, though I can't help wondering where I have seen that smile before.

Just then, Sokka, who is completely useless when he has to navigate the mazes that are only natural to me, rushes in. He instantly hits Jin, who, unluckily had stood by the door. He shoots into the air, waving his arms in big circles, almost comedicly. Almost. "Woah! Oh... wow!" He screeches mid-air. He splats face first onto the Fire Nation Embalm. His hair tie springs from his wolf's tail, landing across the room, and leaving his hair sprawled straight up. The boomerang from his pack pops out, nearly smacking me in the eye, before it wheels back around. It thumps him on his rear. "Thanks boomerang. Now you come back!" He groans, rolling to his side; then, he sprawls out on his back.

I resist the urge to yell at him, but just smack my hand against my head in frustration while growling profanities. I find the golden key laying a few feet from Jin, then, pull her to her feet. She smiles again, batting her eyelashes. What is with this girl? I wonder, turning to hide my blush. However, the key captures my attention and I move for the door. "Katara." I call as it clicks open.

"Damn girl is gone." A medic lies on his back by the bed. Besides him and the pile of tools in the floor in front of him, nothing seems out of the ordinary.

"What! Where did she go!" I slam my hand down on the table. The combination of the heat and power from my fist break it in half.

"Shan! Why are you on the floor?" Jin rushes in, eyeing the table for the moment, but lifting Shan's limp head from the floor.

"Freaky chick did some weird voodoo magic on me. I couldn't control my body. She made me release her." I help Jin and Sokka, who's wolf's tail was slightly off centered now, lift him on to the mattress.

"It's called blood bending." Sokka's eyes go wide, then he open's his mouth several times but no sound escapes. "What, Sokka!" I say exasperated.

"Blood bending!" He shouts, nearly fainting as he does. "It.. how...you?" He tries to speak but nothing makes sense so I just ignore him. He goes on babbling like a chatter monkey, until I want to beat his brains in.

"Sokka! Will you just shut up and let me think?" Steam erupts from my nose, and Sokka jumps back in surprise.

"Zuko. How are we going to find Katara?" Sokka speaks softer, like a scolded polar bear dog.

"Hey pansies! Your prayers have been answered!" Toph walks into the room, punching both of us in the shoulders. As we wince in pain she adds, "Wow. That's all it took to make you two my bitches!"


	6. Chapter 6: The Search

**A/N: Writing as Sokka was so much fun. I had to make him a little immature. :) **

**This chapter also turns dark, as it dives straight into Katara fighting with herself. **

**And Toph has a super cool new power, cuz she just wasn't awesome enough YET! lol**

**R&R Please It makes me happier than Foam Out the Mouth Guy! **

**Disclamer, I do not own. If not it would have been ZUTARA and TOKKA (:**

Sokka

I fell my eyes blink repeatedly as Toph walks in the room. She looks... great. I couldn't stop myself from thinking it. Since I last saw her, she has grown at least a foot, coming to about to my shoulders. Her hair is still pushed back with a green headband, but now, it flows over her shoulders in disorderly waves. As she punches Zuko and I, her face lights up like the sun rising in the South Pole. My eyes drift down her body, which is oddly clad in a white and green gauze that clings to her body in all the right places. Especially her boobs, and Spirits, Toph has nice boobs. Wait? Toph has boobs?

She spins in a happy little circle, celebrating her joke, which, thankfully allowed her not to notice the slight change in my heartbeat. Unfortunately, Zuko caught my gaze and shoots me a questioning look. I shrug my shoulders awkwardly. "Toph, are you..." I pause trying to catch the right words. "wearing a dress?"

She stops mid-turn and stares at me. "I dunno? What's it to ya?" She crosses her thin, pale arms across her chest, pushing her bosom upwards. I swallow hard and shift my weight awkwardly.

"I just thought you were a pants type of girl." I pull awkwardly on my wolf's tail, quickly realizing that my words did not come across the right way.

"I was... Until I learned how liberating a dress could be!" She hops from foot to foot with fists full of the billowy material, exposing her feet.

"I see you still aren't wearing shoes." Zuko points out blandly, obviously not one for reunions.

"I see you still have no personality."

I can't help but to burst out at her remark. "Good one!" I high-five her, still laughing. Her blind eyes crinkle at the corners as she feels both mine and Zuko's reaction.

Zuko is steaming. Literally. "Are you going to help me find Katara or not?"

She nods, but not before she sticks her tongue out at him. "I'm missed you, Toph." I say, wrapping her in a one-armed hug.

"Yeah, yeah." She visually blushes, and I almost cheer for my small victory. She places a palm on the floor. "She went this way."

Toph

I don't think my being blind has ever been an impairment. That's mainly because I can see. Not in the traditional sense of the word of course, and up until a few months ago, I hadn't figured out how to use it.

"How do you know that?" Sokka kneels down, eyeing the floor with suspicion.

"I can see it." I lead the way through the corridor. Focusing on what the floor can tell me.

"What?" Zuko pipes up from behind me. "What do you mean by that?"

"Yeah. Toph, last I checked, you're blind."

"Sokka..." Zuko warns against him impulsive remark.

I roll my eyes. "Will you two Daisies shut up and just let me concentrate?" I touch the floor with my hand, breathing in. It's like the air changes around me, and the vibrations are not those of Zuko and Sokka, but instead I feel nothing. "This used to terrify me. When I would hone in on another's energy left in the earth, I suddenly couldn't see how I usually could. All around me was bright, but in different variations. Colors." I pause. Knowing the boys were listening, but they had always been a little dense when someone attempted to explain anything. "Walls that had just been represented by vertical seismic energy, turned into solid shapes, I could actually see the variations of what I felt. The even cooler part is I can see people now."

"What do I look like then?" Sokka's voice floats back to me, in this dream state.

"Shut up, Sokka. I can only see past energies. I'll look at you later." I promise this; I have always wanted to see what he looks like. I bet he looks good! I smile, and feel the blush on my physical being. I breathe again, focusing and searching for Katara. "I see people both as they actually are and their auras."

"She sounds like Uncle." Zuko grumbles behind me.

"I know some girls find your husky man voice dangerously sexy but it's really making me wanna snap your neck." I say, not even turning to speak to his face. "I found her." I stare at her wildly. "What the hell?" She stumbles through the corridor, but her physical state isn't what takes me aback. It's her aura. It's churning, pulsating a darkness that I have never seen before. I am drawn to it. I reach out a hand, eager to touch the mass. As I do, it snakes up my arm, and fills my head by entering my ears. "I'm in Katara's head!"

_Katara's head is so weird._ The thought rolls out, then disappears in the foreign air. I can feel the darkness circling around her brain, her thoughts, her feelings like a serpent. It's tendrils tainting all it touches. The rational, normal Katara is exhausted, from a drug cocktail mostly. The other side of Katara is alive, like a fire rippling through her body, running on natural instinct. They both play the same scene.

_I'm evil. I blood bended him. Contorted his body under my control. I felt every muscle stretch, every bone snap against his joints. I felt his fear._ The good of Katara spills her regrets, rushing through the scene of the medic bulkling under her authority. It sickens me to watch, but I can't look away.

_You loved it!_ The other cackles wildly in her head, and the good cowers. Guilt and hatred had doubled her over as the evil side of Katara paces back and forth. _There's so much power! Don't act like you don't love the rush. You love feeling someone forced to submit to you completely. You can't just forget the taste of these dark fruits. How does it taste?_

The good looks up at her, tears streaming down her face. _Like blood, dark circulating blood, like I'm drinking it from- from my victim's neck._ She sobs into the ground. _And I wanted more._

_And what else?_ The evil smiles, the sharp-pointed teeth showing. The good shakes her head, mouth pursed to control the sound. _Fine. Was it... chocolate?_ She whispers it in her ear, then laughs as her duplicate shivers with a mix of desire and despair. _So delicious. We should do this more often. Who knows how many bones we broke; maybe we killed him. Do we have blood on our hands? Aw. That's too bad._

_You're a monster! _The other screams it, crawling backwards away from her.

_No you are!_ She lifts her up by the collar of her blue tunic and throws her to the ground again._ I'm just along for the ride! You wanted it! Torture! That is what you really wanted! Just admit it! You could have simply bended his hand to the key, but you didn't! He had you trapped. You wanted him to feel as helpless as you did. And so much more._ She pauses as the other girl turns her back to her. Just_ give in to it. Let the urge make you who you truly are. _Her voice is almost kind, almost compassionate. She places her hand on the girl's shoulder.

_No! I wont! _She swats the hand away, getting into a fighting stance.

_Do it! Blood bend me!_ Her smile keeps growing, and the laughter spills across the plain. _Remember the icy hot sensation traveling down your back. Relish in how it makes you in control. End this fight!_

_NO!_ The shriek rips the vision like a rock hitting glass, and everything goes black. I still hear the laughing in my ears.

"Toph! Toph!" Someone was screaming my name, but they were so far away... I open my eyes to nothing but darkness. I'm blind again. I'm back to me.

"Put me down, Knucklehead." I moan, and my feet touch the floor barely. "Sokka." I wrap my arms around him again, sighing into his neck.

"What happend?" Zuko is scared, I deduce. "You said you were in Katara's head.." Oh. That's where the emotion is from.

"All I can tell you is that she is in trouble." I take off running towards the direction that I know Katara will be.

Zuko

For a strange, little blind girl she sure is useful. I follow behind her as she weaves through hallways that I haven't even been through before. "This way!"  
She turns into an unseen corridor. "She's in there." I push past Toph and into the room.

"Where?" I glance around the room. "Toph." I growl in frustration.

"Um.. Zuko? Whose closet did we walk into?" He wanders around the racks pulling things wildly. He pulls a red dress over his head. "Look Zuko! I'm a pretty Fire Nation girl." He bats his eyelashes and purses his lips. "Oh Prince Zuko! You are so wonderful!" He grabs a fan from the shelf and pops his hip. "Oh look at me Prince Zuko!" He tries to make his voice as girly as possible, but fails, miserably.

"Sokka. That's my sister's dress." I shake my head, trying to wipe the image from my mind.

"Oh Spirits!" He gasps, falling backward as he tries to pull it over his head. "Woah!" He screams as he disappears from view.

"Zuko? Is Sokka floating in the air right now?" She shifts her feet, trying to see.

"No..." I turn to her, confused. "Why?"

"He's gone!"


	7. Chapter 7: Hijacking

Zuko

"What do you mean by gone?"

"Exactly what I said! He was here..." She crosses the room, but cuts off her speech.

"Toph?" Suddenly, she was gone too. I push through the racks of heavy clothing to where she was. "Come on Toph, this isn't funny." I say, sighing in irritation. I pause, listening carefully to the near silent pads of her unclad feet, or the heavy waft of breath she lets out in an attempt to keep from saying something sarcastic, but there was none. The only sound I hear is the scuffle of my swift feet on the golden floors. Scrape. Scrape. Scrape. Ping. Scrape. "What was that?" I wonder aloud. I kick the tile and it falls away. "I'm going to have to go down there." I sigh, jumping down the shaft.

I land naturally on my feet, on a creaking wood floor. "Toph? Sokka?" I call out into the darkness.

"Over here, Sparky!" I feel a small hand touch my leg. "Where are we? I can't feel anything."

"I don't know. Is the whole room wood? Where's Sokka?" I light a torch in my palm. Scanning where Toph is, I find my answer. Sokka is sprawled on the floor, one leg bent at an awkward angle, and his sock in his mouth. "What the hell?"

"He wouldn't shut up." Toph smiles innocently. "Now. I'm gonna take it out, but if you start freaking screaming again, I'm going to take you out." She removes it slowly, feeling up his chest, and even in the dull light I can see him flush.

"That was sweaty!" He shouts scrubbing his tounge with his hands. "Zuko, I think I broke my foot." He says after he gets done protesting the sock, tears welling up in his eyes. I light a wall lantern, and feel the foot in question. Exasperated, I sigh.

"It's just bruised, Sokka." I roll my eyes.

"Well." He stands wincing. "It hurts!"

"Do you want me to kiss it and make it better, Princess?" Toph mocks him but pushes herself to standing position uneasily.

"No!" He crosses his arms like a two year old and stomps his foot. I turn away, tuning out Toph's attempts to make him squirm and his feeble rebuttals. I create a small torch in the palm of my hand. The flame casts light upon the seemingly never-ending hallway. Where the hell are we? I wonder. I knew Azula had secret hiding places all over the palace. I thought they had just been limited to cubby holes filled with forbidden documents. Stumbling upon this was like finding the Chamber of Secrets. Why wood, Azula? Wood is something only the poorest of the poor use in construction, or at least it is that way in the Fire Nation. Wood is too suceptible to hot-headed benders. There has to be a reason, because Azula would never settle for something inferior. Or is there any method to her madness? I force the negative thoughts of her from my consciousness and travel down this long forgotten corridor.  
"Azula's panic room?" Sokka and Toph have finally stopped their nonsensical bickering and join me at the end of the hall. The young teenage girl is latched onto his arm with one hand, and the other is laced through his large fingers. Her tone is undoubtably unimpressed, but I know that is because she can't see the bigger picture.

Sokka misses it, too. "But there is nothing here!" He gestures to the blank wood wall in front of us. "Of course she built herself a crazy box!"

"It's not a crazy box." I roll my eyes. And she's not crazy! I almost say it, but the only one who understands my unfaltering protection of my sister is Katara. She's just... lost. "It's genius." I watch Sokka's confused face contort as I step through the wall.

Sokka

"Did you just walk through the wall?" I scream at the wood, stupefied. I feel Toph tense up on my arm.

"Sparky can walk through walls know but I still can't see." She mutters bitterly, so low that only I can hear it. She is obviously perturbed by being in this coffin. I stroke her hair with my free hand and then reach out to test the structure. I gasp as it ripples around my hand, hot like lightning but smooth like water. "What is it?" Toph whispers in my ear, sending more chills down my spine. Wordlessly, I grasp the hand that is leaving finger nail presses into the fine skin. She starts to complain, "That's the only thing I can fee- oh!" She gasps aloud sticking her fingers through the veil. "What is it?"

I wish I could answer her. I am usually the plans guy, the know all the answers guy, but this one has me stumped. Is it technology or bending? I'm baffled by the thing. "How is this possible?"

A hand reaches through the veil, grabbing my neck. A small choked sound escapes, and I grab the hand. It anchors me, and pulls me through.

Zuko

"What the hell!" Sokka comes through swinging, and Toph clutching to him with her pale gray eyes wide.

"Why didn't you go through, dammit!" I grit my teeth angrily. "If you would have gotten your finger out of your ass we would have caught Katara!"

"She was here?" He pales.

"Yeah, but then she ran. She didn't even realize I was here Sokka." I shake my head. "She was reliving the effects of Azula's mind hijacking."

"What's hijacking?" Toph cocks an eyebrow at me.

"It's where someone messes with your memories. It happened to me, once that I can actually remember. It was a maze. She created a maze for me. Something was chasing me, but there was fire, fire was everywhere. I couldn't wake from it. It was just endless hell. By the time I was able to escape from it, my mom was gone. All I know is I saw Azula and my father, talking about..." I clutch my head as the agony rips through it. Flashes of young Azula, sitting in front of my father. His face is dark, sinister. He mumbles my name. Azula's eyes sparkle with delight. "I will do it." She coos. My father's lips open and say... I collapse, hitting the floor.

"Holy shit, Zuko!" Toph shouts as I fall on top of her. I blink rapidly, trying to chase away the dizziness. My head pounds, while the room spins in all different directions.

"Where did you go, dude?" Sokka tries to help me up, but I shove him away. I lay there, staring through the darkness.

"My memory of whatever my sister and father were planning, are planning, perhaps I just don't know." I generate another fireball and twist it in my palm. Forcing my body to quit shaking, I get on my feet. "Lets go get Katara." I must push past my pain if we are to save her.


	8. Chapter 8: Remembering

**AN: I know it has been forever since I wrote! I'm so sorry! Don't hate me. :)**

**Toph**

In all of my time being blind, I have had to allow my other senses to take over. It used to be hard. When I was younger, if I found myself on a wood floor, I would turn around and find a way around the stupid material. Now, clinging onto Sokka's arm for dear life, I scoot around the floor slowly. " What's a labrenth ?" I direct the question to Sokka, whistling it softly in his ear.

I feel a rise in his shoulders and a soft reply into the top of my head, " I dunno. " He walks faster, I presume it's because Sparky sped up. I force myself to pick up my feet, though it is dizzying and disorienting. I feel him let go of my hand and wrap his arm around my mid-section. I find this to be steadying. Taking a deep breath and tucking my face into his cloak, we run behind him.

I listen to the sounds of our feet, two-hundred steps then left, five hundred then right, fifty then right again. I don't know how Zuko is choosing his path, but I trust his instinct. One because he knows his sister, the other because he knows Katara. I know he loves her, deeply. I felt it since the day that he joined us back at the Western Air Temple. I mean, he had all this pent-up guilt and anger and hostility, but I could tell. I always know. The biggest surprise to me is when Hot-pants chose the Captain Depression to be his Fire Lady or whatever. It doesn't take a blind girl to see that the two were just together because that's what everyone else wanted. Well, he might have loved her, once, but I know that her leaving him was more of a relief than a disappointment.

"Hey Sparky.. Are we there yet? These twists and turns are making me queasy."

"Don't you throw up on me !" Sokka yells, poking me lightly in the stomach. Though his outcry he doesn't let me go, and I feel a small chuckle inside his chest.

"Poking me in the stomach is not going to make me not throw up, moron."

"Hey ! Don't call- "

"Enough !" Zuko calls back to us. I hear him stop, and Sokka lurches to a stop. I smell the smoky smell of a dry campfire.

"Woah Sparky. Cool it with the fire power. You're going to burn down this whole place !"

"That's not me, Toph. " I feel my eyes widen in fear, and Sokka's heartbeat quicken. Who else is down here with us !

**Zuko**

Azula is a genius. A twisted, demented genius but still a genius nevertheless. We scamper down the hallways, lightless of course because if you light a fire in a cramped wooden box you are just looking for disaster. It's practically a wooden tomb. Earth-benders, meaning for Azula Dai Lee agents, can't sense this place, and easily get entrapped in the structure. Fire-benders, meaning me and my family and most of the kingdom, are blind and impatient without our fire and would kill ourselves in an inferno. Non-benders are slower, clumsy and easily deceived, and that is exactly what she designed it for. Well played sister, well played.

I lead the way, using my senses guide me. How did Katara even get down here ? The tunnels remind me of a spider's web, intricate and slender. I can't stop myself from thinking about the maze from when Azula messed with my mind. Confusion and deceit are her specialty. I shake my head, trying to remove the thoughts of her from my mind. I have a greater purpose to worry about now. How am I going to find her. The desperate thought runs thought runs through my mind. This place is made to keep me out.

I pause, briefly, both letting Sokka and Toph catch up with me, but I am also focusing in on my instincts. Here, the tunnels are completely dark. I can tell that the path has been frequently traveled, and I am willing to bet all the Palace that Katara is down there. I close my eyes, ignoring anything that would hinder my search. Something pulls at me deep in my gut, almost like a flame flaring up. I inhale sharply, letting the sensation boil up inside of me. I feel magnetized, pulled to some unknown force deep in this abyss. It's like my body is electrified, unlike when redirecting my father's lightening, it travels through my blood stream. I can feel it as I run through the corridors. The sensation grows bigger and bigger.

Suddenly, a cloud of smoke attacks my lungs. "Woah Sparky. Cool it with the fire power. You're going to burn down this whole place !" Toph shouts at me and I open my eyes.

"It's not me!" The feeling is so strong it's making me sick. "Katara!" I yell beating on the wall. A piece breaks off in my hand. "Hold on Katara!" I scream again, kicking the barrier down. Suddenly, an explosion of heat surges up into my face. Fire licks the walls, traveling inward, toward Katara. "Katara!" I manipulate the fire away from us both, and fight to the middle. "Katara!" I wrap my arms around her, but she shoves me away. "Come on!" I shout over the rush of the inferno.

"Help me get this open!" She screams back. At first I hesitate, about to just grab her over my shoulder and run, but she grabs my hands. "Here!" I feel the small groove in the wood and force my fingers down into it. Katara pulls at the corner. The fire is so hot that I can feel my back blistering though it is protected by my robe. Finally, the hutch pops loose, and I shove Katara into it just as the fire licks my hand. I cry out in pain, and fling myself into the hole. The piece clamps back into place, and shuts the fire above. I hit the ground hard, popping my shoulder out-of-place with the impact. I grit my teeth as Katara appears. "Oh Spirits Zuko! This is all my fault!" She helps me sit up, and I have to grind my teeth to keep from crying out again. I know that it would only make her feel worse. "Give me your arm." I hold it out to her tentatively. "How did you find me?" She brushes hair from my brow and I fight a flush.

"Toph, mostly, then my inst-" She rips the dislocated arm up suddenly as I speak. "Shit!" I shout, the pain coming all at once.

"I'm sorry Zuko." She examines my hand. "We will have to heal this later, I don't have my skins."

I nod, though the injury pulses with pain. The burn is bad, and it will scar, but it's not the worse burn I've ever had. "What happened to you, Katara?" I wipe a smudge of soot from her face as her eyes darken.

"I lost myself. It was like I was in a horrible nightmare, and I couldn't wake up. And I just got here, and set off a booby trap or something, and everything caught on fire. But somehow I knew that I needed to get here." Her beautiful blue eyes churn like the ocean at high tide while she speaks. I hear the fear, guilt, and desperation in every word.

"But where is here?" I mutter, standing. We are in a tiny room, and the only thing furnishing it is a small trunk with a heavy lock. The ornate carvings seem familiar to me but I can't place why.

"I have no clue. I just know that I've been here before... with Azula."

"How?" The possibility that I was right about Azula and her hijacking makes my skin crawl.

"I..." She starts to tell me, but suddenly stops, and her eyes roll back into her head. She crashes to the floor, and I pull her into my arms. I take her and the trunk and start trying to find my way out.

** Katara**

My head pounds; it's as if I am stuck under water and my head is about to explode from pressure. I crack open my eyes, and all though a few rays of light flicker through the blinds the room is dark. I force myself to a seated position, but every move stretches my sore body. Images flood back into my mind. Aang's body sizzling with lightening, stealing the Fire Nation ship, the sparkling of the spirit water, diving into the cold bay, fighting Azula... "Azula!" The word rolls out of my mouth in an astonished whisper. The shadows of the room shift, and it draws my eye to it.

"You called, Peasant?" She emerges from the shadows, cackling, teeth bared like a panther-lion. She moves across the room like a serpent-cougar after it's pray.

Instantly, a pickle of fear ices down my back. I try to evade her advance but she catches me my the arm. "There is no point in trying to escape. Besides, we somethings to talk about."

"I'm not telling you anything!" I jerk away from her, and she grabs my chin.

"Look, Peasant. I don't care about your friends, or your family. I only care about mine." Her gold eyes flicker with rage, but also a quiet sadness that dissipates as soon as I saw it. "And the sad thing is, it seems that our parents are friends." She sits back, examining my expression.

"Are you crazy? No one in my family would ever be friends with yours!" I spit the words in her face.

She throws her head back and laughs. The cackling echoes off the walls. "Really? That is so funny. Actually it's sad how little you know about your own mother."

* * *

My head pounds; it's as if I am stuck under water and my head is about to explode from pressure. I crack open my eyes, but this time the room glitters with light. I squint my eyes against it as a silhouette approaches me. My whole body tenses up, ready to strike, when the form hits me. I am in wrapped in it's arms, my nose against it's neck. I inhale sharply, sensing the spicy scent of cayenne, smoke and sage, along with a softer hint of lilac underneath it all. "Zuko!" I breathe into his neck.

"Are you okay?" He pulls back, caressing my chin; I have to try hard not to flinch because it reminds me so much of his sister.

I feel like lying, but there is something about Zuko that makes that impossible. Much different from how I couldn't lie like someone like Aang. Lying to Aang is like kicking a baby saber tooth moose-lion, but lying to Zuko makes my skin crawl. "No." I lay down in his lap, and he plays with my hair. "I lost control of my self. I blood bended that poor doctor!" I feel the hot tears behind my eyes, and my throat feels like it's on fire. The tears start flowing, raining down my cheeks. My heart pounds up into my throat and my chest heaves. I told myself that I would never do it again. It's evil! I let myself lose control and succumb to the darkness. It's evil. I'm evil. "Zuko." I sob, trying to control myself. He caresses my cheek and pulls me tighter into his embrace. I instantly lose it, and turn into his chest bawling. "I hate myself!" I scream into his chest.

**Zuko**

I cradle Katara tightly in my arms as her body is wracked with sobs. "Shhh." I breathe, pulling her closer to try to calm her. "I hate myself!" I hear the muffled words as she buries herself into my shirt. I knew how badly this craft disturbed her, but I never understood how horrible the situation is. She twists her fists into my shirt, pulling it tight against my chest. "Katara. Stop." I rub circles on her back. She cries even harder, and for a second I have no clue what to do. I pull her off of me and just study her face. She opens her eyes, which seem to churn even harder and faster than normal, and stares right back stunned by my sudden movement.

I touch her face again, hands shaking. I wipe below her eyes and slowly the tears stop. "Katara, you are perfect." I trace her full lips with my thumb. I hesitate, just for a moment deliberating my next move. I lean in, slowly, and kiss her softly on her tear stained cheek. "Perfect."


	9. Chapter 9: A Thousand Lights

Katara

It took me three weeks. Three weeks to recover from the shakes. Three weeks to remember what I've pushed down deep inside. Three weeks to get rid of the nightmares. Everyone has been bizarre.

Sokka is panic-y and bothersome. All the time, he is checking up on me. He follows me around even! I know he is just concerned, but anytime he's not with Toph, he is hovering around me. Toph has changed too, she treats me mostly the same, which I am exponentially thankful for, but she seems dazed. I can't put my finger on it, and it frustrates the hell out of me.

Aang is walking on egg shells around me. Never doing any of his crazy antics around me, or joking around. In fact I haven't seen much of him, he's been using the time to recruit re-builders for the air temples. Things have changed between he and I, though I wish it hadn't. I can tell that he was hoping for our reconciliation, but he has started to slowly realize that we are both not the same people who kissed on the balcony of the palace. The time apart brought clarity we both needed. Well, me more than him. I am certain know I never loved him in that way. I just hope he and I can be as close again.

The only one who isn't acting weird is Zuko. He has been with me every moment that he possibly can. In reality, I should find this smothering, but I don't. I know Zuko would leave me alone if I wanted him to. I don't want him to.

I dip my quill back into the thick black ink. The doctor I have been seeing recommends me writing as often as possible, as bottling everything up makes everything worse. Then, a light tapping comes from outside the doorway. "Just a minute!" I call, binding the journal with the lilac ribbon and sliding it under my bed roll. "Come in." I say, flopping on the bed with a book filling with fire nation customs.

"Princess." A small girl comes in bowing her head, her black hair falling from her bun into her eyes.

"It's okay Terra. Please call me Katara." I smile the girl is an orphan, having lost her mother at birth and her father in the war. Ozai had her as a concubine for General Wong, something that sends chills up and down my spine. Zuko rescued the poor girl from the perverts clutches, and took her to live in the palace. Zuko adores her just as much as I do, and we joke that she is our child though she is twelve. She says she feels indebted to us (though I do not see why she is in debt to me) and demands that she work instead of being a burden. Zuko tried arguing but she stayed firm, stubborn as the element that she is named for, and so he named her to take care of me.

"Princess..." She begins but stops herself. "Katara. Zuko wanted me to deliver this to you." She hands me a neatly wrapped package, sealed with another lilac ribbon.

"Zuko!" I notice the ribbon as one that only he sends, an inside joke between us, a water bender who is as comfortable among fire benders as fire itself. I smile to myself thinking of the disguised visits into the city. I unwrap the package carefully, then rip through the tissue paper. "Oh wow." I breathe as my fingertips trace the silk. I start to lift it from the papers, when a note slips out. In golden, curled script it says "For a night in the moonlight. Palace steps. Sundown."

Zuko

I pace back and forth nervously. I wonder if it is all too much. The palace steps are empty, well except for me. I run my hands through my hair, pulling it in frustration. "Where is she." I mumble, wiping my sweaty palms on my midnight blue undershirt. The one I am wearing for her. I look up into the full moon, and then I throw my arms up. "Where!" I whisper exasperated.

"Zuko," I hear the light, airy voice call from behind me, and I whirl around. Katara stands at the top of palace steps, looking down on me shyly. As she sees my face, hers lights up. As she enters the light of the moon, I see her clearly. I am breathless at what I see, She is wearing the dress I had made for her. It wraps around her neck, solid except for the cut out that exposes a flash of skin from her collar-bone to the tops of her breasts. From there it clings to her body, all the way down to her feet. The fiery red silk is adorned with hundreds of sapphires, and glitters in the moonlight. "Wow. Zuko! I've never seen the moon this beautiful!" She gasps as she reaches me.

"You are far more beautiful." I stammer out, cursing myself for being tongue-tied suddenly. I bow to her, taking her hand and kissing it gently. I can see her face flush even in the dimmed light. "I have a surprise for you." I say, looping one arm behind her back. My fingertips graze over her exposed back, and I feel her shiver.

"Another one?" She says amazed. "Thank you for the dress, Zuko, I love it!" She turns in hugging me tightly.

"Your welcome." I blush. We walk to the balcony that over looks the city. "Are you ready for your surprise?" She nods her head quickly, excitement in her eyes. I approach the balcony and begin to speak. "Long ago-" The city becomes alive, street lanterns spring to life, illuminating the crowd. Katara watches with both intrigue and confusion. The crowd cheers loudly at our arrival. I see below one man foaming at the mouth with excitement. I try again. "Thank you!" I say graciously and they calm, minus the man being carried away now by medics. "Long ago, my great-grandfather, Fire Lord Sozin, began his destruction of the other nations. This spurred on a hatred between us and other lands. We as a whole have mistreated other benders, crucifying what they held sacred. Many of you remember the day the moon went red, and then was gone." My eyes flicker to Katara who flinched at the memory, but I keep going. "Zhao killed the moon spirit on that day, and a young woman by the name of Yue gave her life for the spirit. For that we, as a nation, are indebted to her. Tonight we all gather in a celebration of Yue and her sacrifice." I pause, turning to Katara. "This young woman is going to lead us in prayer to the moon spirit." I relinquish control of the crowd to her, and she steps forward. Her eyes shine with quiet tears.

Her voice is strong, steady. She commands the crowd so eloquently that no one dares make a sound. "My name is Katara, daughter of Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe. In the Southern Water Tribe, my lineage makes me no more nobility than any of you. I did not know what it was to be a princess before I met Yue. She was a great woman, and a good friend of mine, my brothers, and the Avatar. She was princess of the Northern Water Tribe, daughter of Chief Arnook. Her death was selfless and pure. She was so good, always throwing herself into helping others. She told me one day I would help make a change to the world; I would help unite the nations. I thought she was just speaking of my journey helping the Avatar. I now know she meant much more. As Princess of the two Water Tribes, I name this day in honor of Yue." She grabs my hand and raises her arms to the moon. I see the crowd do so as well. All is silent as we close our eyes, commemorating Yue. "Thank you Yue!" She shouts to the sky.

"Thank you, Yue!" I mimic her actions.  
"Thank you, Yue!" The crowd passionately roars, following our lead.

"Thank you, Katara." I say then turn to the crowd. "In celebration, we shall all light our lanterns and send them up to Yue, in tribute." I grab the lantern, giving it to Katara. My palm flickers with a small, controlled flame. I shift it to my fingertips and then into the lantern's chamber. Katara pushes it up into the sky. Suddenly, thousands of lights fly into the air, dancing around Katara and I.

"Thank you, Zuko." She wraps her arms tightly around me, tears streaming down her face. We look up, silently watching the flickering lights in the night sky, still tight in each other's embrace.


	10. Chapter 10: The Cavern

Katara

Zuko rips me through from the surging crowd as soon as the music starts. The people practically mob us in their excitement. They stretch out their hands, reaching toward mine, giving me words in a language I don't quite understand. I look to Zuko, but his face is turned away. I wrap my hand in his, and allow him to pull me thorough the surging crowd. "Where are we going?" I yell into his ear.

He pauses suddenly, and I run into his back. He smiles, this stunning little smile that lights up his entire face, and wraps his arm around my waist. "Soon." Though he whispers it, I can hear the word over even the sungi horns. I am glad that he turns his head forward and resumes navigating our way through the throng of people because a deep flush washes over my face.

Zuko pulls me with him into a darkened alley. The sounds from the celebration turn into muffled distorted sounds bouncing of the stone walls around us. My eyesight is gone, the sudden darkness messing with my perception. "Zuko..." I say, fear edging my voice.

He grips me tighter, rubbing small circles on my back. "It's okay." He mumbles into the top of my head. "We're almost there." I feel my muscles relax as he pulls me tightly into him. I bury my nose in the side of his chest, inhaling the spicy musk that is Zuko, and allow him to guide me through the darkness. I can't help thinking how comfortable the whole situation is, and how natural it is to just be with him.

Obviously, he doesn't know the definition of almost. It seems to take hours through the darkness. I listen carefully as the cheering and music grows softer. Where is he taking me?

Zuko

I can see the wonder in Katara's eyes the second we enter the dimly lit corridor. Every inch is covered with lush, thick, flowered vines. They inter-lock all across the walls and droop down from the ceiling, and I push past curtains of greenery as we go. Thick candles sit in clear vases, casting our shadows around in fluttering bursts. Katara's face is lit up in awe. "Wow." She breathes into my ear, clutching my arm as she skips to catch up to me. I turn into her, and place my palms on her smooth shoulders. An electric spark snakes its way through us, and I feel her shiver under my touch. My fingers trail slowly up her arms, to her neck, across her jaw, and up to the bottom of her eyes. I brush her bottom eyelashes ever so lightly and she lets out a staggered sigh, as if she'd been holding it in the whole time.

"You haven't even seen the best part yet." My voice comes out deep and husky, even though I didn't plan it to about being this close to Katara, with my hands tracing her beautiful mocha colored skin drives out urges in me that I had buried since before the war. A lump forms right above my Adam's apple, and I force it, and the feelings back down into the pit of my stomach. "Close your eyes." It comes out as a whisper. I see the swirling, churning uncertainty in her eyes, but she does it without hesitation. I inch along behind her, and cup my palms loosely over her eyes. "Walk." I command, and she goes, but not before wrapping her fingers around my wrists.

Katara

I don't know why he has this effect over me. He leads me into the unknown, his rough palms cup over my eyes, tickling my eyelashes. He commands me forward, giving me sharp, one word directions like he would a member of his crew or someone else he had authority over. I would not ever let him boss me around like this, never in a million years. There was just something in how he had spoken to me before. Normally, Zuko is crisp, precise; he never changes his tone, unless in anger. I have never heard it slip in to that silky, gravely tone that was hiding just a little hint of something more dangerous. And it made me melt. His touch on my skin, his breath in my ear, all of it makes me light up like a flame. Now, feeling his hard, toned chest pressed up against my exposed back sends shivers up my spine. He barks another order in my ear, and it sends my heart racing, partly from anticipation, partly from anxiety, but mostly from a naughtier thought line playing in the back of my brain. Damn him and those lips, brushing the outside of my ear.

I reach up, lacing my fingers in between his, forcing them to separate. I pull down sharply, and a flash of light greets my sights for barely a second before Zuko's strong hand grabs both my wrists with just two fingers on one hand and slaps his hand back in place. The blow doesn't hurt, but the sudden force knocks me off-balance. I fall back into him and he uses his chest to stabilize me. His other arm let's go of my wrists and flattens my whole body against him. "No." He growls ferociously, pressing his lips tightly over my ear so much that I feel the brush of his teeth.

I throw my head back involuntarily, trying to shake his hands for a moment so I could look at him. "Zuko, please..." I don't know what I was really going to say. The words come out as a coo, halfway still reeling from his lips on my ear.

"Katara." He warns, taking his fingers and spreading them long enough to see his twinkling eye and the upturned smirk that causes a shiver to violently course my body. I see a flash of his teeth, one of those rare full smiles that creeps across his features before his hands plunge me into darkness again.

"What games are you playing with me Zuko?" I try to sound annoyed, to cover up the embarrassment that fuels the flush of my cheeks.

"I'm not."

"Yes you are!" I bite back.

"Can you not just be patient!" I hear a quick, rushing sound bouncing off the walls as he speaks.

"We've been at this for hours!"

"It's been fifteen minutes, Tara."

"No. No. No. No. You are NOT going to call me that." My fist clenches, and I can feel water near-by and a lot of it.

"I always call you that." I feel him stiffen at that.

"Not when I'm mad at you." I pout.

"Don't be mad at me." He seems slightly sad, and wounded. He suddenly stops, and drops his hands from my eyes. They shoot off blasts of fire which I feel the bursts of heat as I go rigid. His warm hands settle at the curvature of my hips. "Open your eyes." He coos to me.

"Hmm. I'll wait." I say stubbornly, pursing my lips in defiance.

"Fine. You'll never see my surprise for you!" He teases, and I can't help but crack my eyes open.

"Oh Zuko..." I breathe, my hands coming up to my mouth in awe. The lush greenery has bloomed into big, bright, purple buds that snake from the tunnel and up the cave wall. I turn, and find the source of all the water. A huge waterfall rushes into a pool, and I can feel the water going under the rock wall, and flowing into the beyond. I instantly run to the water. It has been ages since I have been able to find a pool that was private enough to practice my bending on a large-scale. "Oh Zuko!" I say again, the excitement in my voice building. I notice the little things he has done, the hanging lanterns and hundreds of candles that give the room the soft, romantic feel. He comes up behind me, silently, and I turn to see him watching me carefully. He shoots two bursts from his fingertips and lights up a small island in the middle of the pool. A blanket and a small basket sit on top, along with two small candles. "Zuko... What is all of this?"

He closes the gap between us and stares into my eyes, I can tell that there are so many thoughts and emotions behind his golden eyes. "I just thought it was special..." He shifts awkwardly, and I place my hand on his shoulder, letting my fingertips brush his neck.

I drop my hands and let all my questions fall silent on my lips. With a heavy planting movement of my feet, and a thick arc followed by a stiffening of my fingers and wrist, I create a thick ice bridge across the swirling waters. I see Zuko's slight reluctance to the ice so I grab his hand, halfway forcing him across.

"This is amazing, Zuko." My voice comes out breathy as we sit down beside each other. He grunts, though I'm not sure if he's pleased or embarrassed with my over zealous display. Maybe a little of both.

"I'm glad you like it." He doesn't meet my eyes, instead he busies himself in the wicker basket teetering on the edge of our island. I hear light pinging as he dislodges two wine flutes and hands them to me. "One of the best in the nation." He gestures to the wine bottle as he pulls it out. I watch the cranberry colored liquid as it swirls into our glasses.

"The Fire Nation and alcohol." I mutter, rolling my eyes in a light-hearted manner.

"The Water Tribe and their sea kumquats."

"Sea Prunes. Zuko. It's sea prunes."

"Still tastes the same to me." He shrugs. He has already loaded our plates high with both Fire Nation and Water Tribe delicacies. I see sea prunes, kelp and seal stew, slow roasted polar bear dog, and sea jelly crammed into one side of my plate. The rest, however, is unknown to me, but Zuko looks ravenous so I know it must be good.

I raise my wine to sip but Zuko lightly taps my wrist. "Customary in Fire Nation tradition, we must drink from the others cup first." Zuko's eyes flicker with an unknown emotion as he says this. He bites into his lip at the end, but not nervously, almost mischievously. I nod, no matter his sudden strange behavior. We entangle our arms, holding the glasses. Where our arms touch it feels like a small inferno has spread across it, and back into my body heating me up entirely. I try to retain the shiver that comes forth and silently curse my body for reacting as it does.

He puts his glass at my lips and I to his. We each take a small sip of the drink. I'm surprised at the taste, it's warm but smooth, and sweet too and at the ending of my sip I taste the sharp nip of spices which was a surprise, but I liked it.

"Thank you, Katara, for gracing me with your presence tonight." His voice has turned low and gravely again, almost in a whisper since we are so close. Even though I know it is a formal saying, I can feel the sincerity in his voice.

"I'm glad I'm with you." The words come out in a whisper as I lock into his amber eyes. I didn't quite mean to say it like I did and I take in a sharp breath, studying him. His eyes swirl from a darker amber to a gold as the thoughts pool in his mind. I see the ghost of a smile, a half smirk, before its gone.  
I let out the breath, relieved as he and I untangle ourselves. He leans closely into me, taps his stem with mine, and takes a long hungry drink. His eyes are lowered again, seductive in my mind. His lips rest on the glass where mine were before for a moment. Then he licks his lips coolly. I take a quick swig to calm the fire bubbling inside.

Zuko doesn't usually talk this much. He babbles on, speaking of every dish. I can tell he notes which foods I enjoyed, and which like the turtle grasshopper soup spit discreetly out. We finish eating, well as much as we can, and he wraps each piece up. "We'll take it to the orphanage tomorrow." He promises to me as an explanation of his motives. He goes on, a ramble of honor and such. I study him.

I had honestly been harboring these disruptive feelings for a long time. As I look at him now, so engrossed and passionate, it makes them harder to ignore. He's clothed in full customary dress amour, which would normally make him seem hard, cold, and calculated but how the moon filters in the cave and bounces off the gold, crimson, and ash of the plates makes him regal, powerful, yet beautiful. Like a metal clad spirit seeping into our world.

"Zuko." I cut him off halfway through his speech about the general who wanted to demolish the poorer area of the Pit, as the upper class has named it. He looks at me wide-eyed for a second, embarrassed. "I think we need to start heading back now, we've both had too much to drink." And I don't trust myself not to ruin us if we stay down here. I want to add but don't, and he nods in response. I think I see a flicker of disappointment but it returns to that cool mask that is Zuko.

The trip back was not far as long as before, but we travel it in silence. He and I still drink, some clear, sweet alcohol now instead of the wine, but we are silent. A million things swirl around in my head, silently cursing myself for ruining such a nice time, and take another swig from the bottle. The party in town has died down, moved to private residences instead of flamboyant displays in the streets. My eyes drift to the full moon, feeling its power like a tide wave even though I'm not bending. The power and instinct combined with the alcohol dizzies me and I nearly topple over. Zuko catches me with one hand on my lower back. "Maybe you've had enough." He takes it from me once I'm steady.

"Maybe I haven't." I whip the last in my mouth and Zuko gives a disapproving look. I stick out my tongue like a spoiled child. He chuckles and grabs my hand. It envelopes my own, and I relish in the security of it. Too soon we are back in the palace, then at the door of my room.

"I had a great time, Zuko." I say letting his hand fall. I look at him expectantly.

He ruffles his shaggy hair, as it has fallen from his top knot and onto the top of his brow bone. He bites his lip and I can tell he is unsure of something from the look in his eyes. "As did I." He says finally. "Good night, Katara." He turns on his heels and zips down the hallway.

I curse myself, kicking the door frame. "Good night Zuko."


	11. Chapter 11: Amazing

Zuko

"You're so stupid!" I grumble at myself, making my way though the maze that is the palace. "How could you have even thought that Katara would feel the same as you! You freaked her out!" I end up outside, somehow, and though I didn't mean to, I arrive at my favorite pond. Of course, the turtle-ducks that I like so much have gone into their nests at this hour, but it is still just as peaceful. I can hear the light music from a neighboring party flowing through the garden. I sigh, plopping down by the bank and burying my head between my knees. I sit there, just listening and wallowing in my own thoughts for what seems like forever.

"Haven't you ever danced, Zuko ?" Katara's voice comes from the other side of the pond. I stand up, peering through the darkness, trying to see where she might be. The darkness is too thick almost. My hand instinctively sets ablaze. The red flame licks against my palm, and spins in the air. The light stretches across the pond. My eyes reach hers, but only for a brief moment. A serpent-like stream of water rises from the pool, striking my open palm. A hiss erupts from it. I stumble backwards, startled because the steam slightly popped my skin.

"Katara !" I start to protest but, before I can get another word out, Katara's finger presses against my open lips. I still try to speak, but she just glares at me, blue eyes burning into mine. I immedently, snap them back close. Still, I defiantly cross my arms.

"Shush Zuko ! Even in the light, you can't always see what's right in front of you. " She slurs every other word, and her breath reeks of spirits. She smiles so big that I can even see it in the darkness. I can't help but to laugh. She reaches to me, grabbing my hand gently, and holding it by our sides. I feel myself start to tense, but I resist the urge to withdraw from her.

"You... " I stammer nervously. " That sounds like something Uncle would say. " I feel her fingers wrap around mine. Her hands are almost unbearably cold against my own, yet somehow comforting. Even with the influx of alcohol in my system, I feel a deep flush reaching my cheeks. I'm so lucky that she can't see my face ; there's a first for everything I guess.

"How is he, anyways?" She takes my left hand and places it on her lower back, causing me to step into her. I smile, raising an eye brow. I'm uncertain if she can see it, but she chuckles. Maybe she can sense how weird this is for me. The melody of her laughter makes me smile even bigger. Her palm hits the back of my neck, chiding me for teasing her. When I hum a bit of a chuckle, she scrapes her nails across the nape pretending to be angry.

"He is the best tea merchant in the Fire Nation. The only thing that could make him happier is if he didn't have to have the title of Fire Lord." I scowl at the thought of Uncle not getting to do what he loves all the time.

"Tell me again, why is he Fire Lord? You should be." She lays her head on my chest. The waters swirl beneath us, causing us to spin gracefully with no real effort.

"It's the Fire Sages'fault. They are all about bringing back the Old Ways." I pause, audibly sighing. "That means I must marry before I can take the throne."

"Then why didn't you just marry Mai at the end of the war ?" She spits her name. I knew that Katara wasn't Mai's biggest fan, but she has never shown such disdain for her to me before.

"You can't marry until your twenty-one." My awkwardness gets the better of me and I drop my hand from her back. Mai and I just broke up, yet here I am, acting as if it had never happened.

"At least your free from her now." She steps backwards, pulling me with her into the water.

* * *

Water splashes onto my bare feet. "Katara." I begin to protest. We are swirling around on the banks of the shore. She leans, pulling against the back of my neck. I stumble forward a half-inch, but from then on I don't budge.

"Just trust me on this one." She pulls a bit more insistently. The pond water pushes past my feet, and I know it is Katara's doing.

"Fine." I step forward, knowing that if I didn't she was going to soak me anyway. I expect for my pants legs to be soaked, but instead, water laps at the soles of my feet. "Woah." I gasp, feeling the waves beneath me. She laughs, taking her steps gracefully. I feel like a toddler chasing after her.

"You really haven't danced!" She picks fun at me.

"Not my fault!" I stomp my foot, splashing the water high, still amazed that we are stepping on it. As a child, dancing was taboo. I can almost remember dancing with my mother, though, on the beach on Ember Island. Although the memory is faint, it's one of the oldest happy ones.

Katara speaks, disturbing my thoughts."Just relax. Dancing is like bending, except with two people. It's just harmony." Her hands wrap around my neck again. "Just try." She whispers it in my ear, sending shivers up and down my spine. I loop my hands around her waist.

We slide around in an awkward, tight circle. Here, without the shade of the trees, I can see Katara's big blue eyes shining in the moonlight. I blush again. "How are you doing this?"

"What?" She tilts her head in confusion, her hair falling from it's intricate braid.

"You're bending, without your hands. If memory serves, grabbing your hands makes you useless." I grab her wrists, holding them just how I had all those years before when I first captured her outside the Earth Kingdom. I laugh, pushing against her slightly.

She rocks backward, but regains her balance by bracing her feet against me. "We've both changed. Frankly, I'm just happy that you don't have that ridiculous pony-tail anymore."

"Hey! I liked my pony-tail and it's called a warriors-tail." I cross my arms, sulking.

"Hey!" She throws her arms around me again, making me catch her. She laughs, her feet dangling about a foot from the water. "There were many days when I wanted to rip that damn pony-tail from your head." She weaves her fingers through my hair, and pulls hard, tipping my head back towards the moon.

I grunt loudly, trying to ignore the tingles that cause my whole body to boil. "Your drunk." She lets me go, all though she doesn't move her face. Her breath washes over me in cool wisps. We are so close to each other.

"So are you. Maybe you need to sober up." The water that was so firm up under my feet, softens, sending me straight in the cool waters.

"Katara!" I scream angrily at her as I plunge. She laughs, from her dry platform above me. I am way to heavy to swim. The current pulls me under. "I'm sinking!" My heavy, ornamental robes drag me beneath the surface.

"Well then strip pretty boy!" She dives head first into the water, I didn't even notice before that she was only wearing her undergarments. My head dips below the surface, and I kick furiously. She bends a bubble, suspending us in the water. Then, she comes up behind me, unlacing the heavy metal shoulder pads. I easily bob up after that, but I keep removing the sodden clothes. Katara helps me with the armor, but swims away when I get to the actual cloth.

I shoot to the surface, sucking in air as quickly as possible. I hear her stuttering a few feet away. I flip over, and float on my back. We stay silent for what feels like a long time. "You want to know why I love coming out here?" I break the silence. I shoot fire balls in all directions, lighting the lamps around the waters.

"Wow. Zuko, this is amazing!" She spins in a circle in the water, laughing as she floats above the water. "How..?"

"There's a fountain, in Ba Sing Se, a friend showed me. It was stunning, and I wanted to bring it here." I feel myself rambling, and my thoughts went to Jin, so I dip my head beneath the surface. The cool water washes over my head, almost sobering me up. Katara glides over to me, and slicks my hair backwards. "So now you have me half-naked, what are you going to do to me?" I nearly slap my hand over my own mouth in surprise. Damn alcohol.  
"This." She grabs my face, running her fingers along the curve of my jaw, and pulls me into her. At first, our lips only slightly touch. She brushes her top lip against my bottom. She pulls back, and there's a hesitant pause. My eyes flutter open, and she laughs. She leans back in, but kisses my cheek, my nose, the other cheek, and then my ear.

"Katara!" I groan impatiently. She laughs again, blowing into my ear. I roar loudly, the sensation almost torturous. Fire erupts from my mouth, and Katara pulls back again. "I'm sorry. I couldn't control it." She stares at me, the shock evident on her face. I resist the urge to drop my head. I stare into her crystal blue eyes. Then I lean in and kiss her softly, holding her there in my arms. I keep her like this for as long as possible, and as I pull away, I suck a little on her bottom lip. We bob there in the water, gasping for air.

"Zuko." She says my name with such care. She traces my scar gingerly. "You are amazing." She tenderly kisses my scarred eye.


End file.
